Lighting info beyond anecdotes?

TurtleBug

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I'm trying to find information about lighting options for my tortoise ... info beyond the anecdotal stuff that seems to be swapped back and forth here and other reptile forums.

"Only a crazy person would use a coiled c.f. (or some other type of light), because it'll blind your turtle (or melt them) ... I heard from a guy!"

Does anyone have links to studies or research?

Thanks,

Jamie


@jsheffield,


A good source for info on reptile UV lighting is the “Reptile Lighting” Facebook group. Dr Frances Baines, one of the best known researchers on reptile lighting, is a member there.

https://facebook.com/groups/ReptileLighting/

Snippet from group info: “Posting of photographs, lighting diagrams as well as irradiance/spectral graphs and published studies is highly encouraged. ... Please check out our FILES tab for uploaded scientific papers, articles and lamp test reports.”
 
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jsheffield

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@jsheffield,


A good source for info on reptile UV lighting is the “Reptile Lighting” Facebook group. Dr Frances Baines, one of the best known researchers on reptile lighting, is a member there.

https://facebook.com/groups/ReptileLighting/

Snippet from group info: “Posting of photographs, lighting diagrams as well as irradiance/spectral graphs and published studies is highly encouraged. ... Please check out our FILES tab for uploaded scientific papers, articles and lamp test reports.”

Awesome, thanks!

Jamie
 

Kapidolo Farms

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Light cycle should approximate what occurs in the wild. Most folks do not take the time to sort out the latitude of the tortoise they have and adjust seasonally for the correct photo period, if that's what you want to do.

UV light from straight tubes works, there are published instances of it for iguanas, and red-eared sliders, use Google scholar. Straight tubes disperse the light over a larger area, and that alone is reason enough to not use coil tubes. Brands and size are enclosure and opinion dependent as manufacturing is variable, so each tube should be evaluated, which is why many folks buy a UV meter. That would give you direct quantitative feedback of the tube of your choice. How to choose and use a meter are on webpages/facebook groups already mentioned.

Anecdotal/empirical evidence is what drives science, it's up to your own critical thinking skills to 'separate wheat and shaft'.

I look forward to your detail anecdotes after you've been doing it for awhile. Keep good records.
 

Britannica

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